U.S. Route 19 Alternate (St. Petersburg – Holiday, Florida)

U.S. Highway 19 Alternate
Route information
Alternate route of US 19
Maintained by FDOT
Length:	37.296 mi (60.02 km)
Existed:	1951 – present
Major junctions
South end:	US 92 / SR 687 in St. Petersburg
	I-375 in St. Petersburg I-275 in St. Petersburg US 19 in St. Petersburg SR 666 in Seminole SR 688 in Largo SR 686 in Largo SR 60 in Clearwater SR 580 in Dunedin SR 582 in Tarpon Springs
North end:	US 19 in Holiday
Highway system
United States Numbered Highways List Bannered Divided Replaced Florida State Roads Interstate US SR (Pre-1945) Toll ← SR 594 SR 597 →

Alternate U.S. Route 19 is the 37.3-mile (60.0 km) former section of U.S. Route 19 from St. Petersburg, Florida to Holiday.

Beginning at the intersection of 4th Street N (US 92 and SR 687 and 5th Avenue N in St. Petersburg, Florida, it runs west of US 19 near the Gulf coast passing through the cities of Seminole, Clearwater, Dunedin and Tarpon Springs before ending at US 19 in Holiday, Pasco County, Florida. It is also the unsigned State Road 595 throughout the entire route. It also runs along much of the Pinellas Trail.

History

State Road 686 & former State Road 651 end at ALT US 19 in Largo, Florida; May 8, 2003

Alternate US 19 was established in 1951 when US 19 was realigned from St. Petersburg through Holiday. It hugs the Gulf coast, servicing Seminole, Clearwater, Dunedin and Tarpon Springs before ending at US 19 in Holiday. Originally, the southern terminus of US Alt 19 was at US 92/SR 687 in downtown St. Petersburg, but was truncated to US 19 in St. Petersburg.

As of September 2007, however, signage indicates that Alt US 19 once again follows US 19's old route all the way to US 92; this original route was numbered and signed as the hidden SR 595 designation of the main route, but the signs are slowly being phased out in favor of Alt US 19 shields. Both shields are in current use, however, for the time being, with the Alt US 19 signage on the highway itself, and the SR 595 directional signage at the intersections, including I-275 exit 23.

Realignment in Clearwater / Largo

Red ALT US 19 shield on the southwest corner of Cleveland Street and Osceola Avenue in Clearwater, Florida; December 20, 2003

Prior to February 2007, Alt. US 19 originally went south through downtown Clearwater on Fort Harrison Avenue, which becomes Clearwater-Largo Road upon entering Largo. It then turned east along West Bay Drive to the intersection of Seminole Boulevard, then turned south. This intersection is also the western terminus of SR 686 and, until the reconfiguration, the southern terminus of SR 651.

As of February 2007, Alt. US 19 was realigned along Missouri Ave., directly north to SR 60 (Court/Chestnut Streets) in Clearwater, west to Myrtle Avenue, then north, before joining Fort Harrison Avenue south of Sunset Point Road. The new alignment now effectively bypasses the downtowns of Largo and Clearwater. The original alignment has since been decommissioned by the FDOT and downloaded to the cities of Largo and Clearwater. SR 651 still exists in FDOT's road inventory lists, but as a "hidden" route number along the new Alt. US 19 alignment.

When this plan was first announced in 2001, it was viewed as good news for commuters and businesses championing the project as a way to turn Clearwater into a walkable community.^{[citation needed]}

Proposed expressways

West end of State Road 582 at ALT US 19 in Tarpon Springs, Florida; July 28, 2003

The planned St. Petersburg-Clearwater Expressway, or Pinellas Beltway, proposed in 1974, would have followed the current alignment of US Alt 19 from I-275 to Clearwater. A freeway revolt cancelled the beltway by 1980. The intersection of Seminole Boulevard and Bay Pines Boulevard at Florida State Road 666 is a remnant of this proposed road.

Major junctions

County	Location	Mile	km	Destinations	Notes
Pinellas	St. Petersburg	0.000	0.000	US 92 / SR 687 (4th Street)
		0.251	0.404	I-375 west to I-275 – Tampa, Bradenton	Eastern terminus of I-375
		0.588	0.946	I-375 west to I-275 – Tampa, Bradenton	Northbound exit / southbound entrance only
		1.295	2.084	I-275 / 20th Street	Exit 23B (I-275), I-275 northbound entrance / I-275 southbound exit only
		2.510	4.039	US 19 (34th Street) – Bradenton, Pinellas Park
		6.068	9.765	SR 693 (66th Street)
	Seminole	10.042	16.161	SR 666 west (Tom Stuart Causeway) – Madeira Beach, Redington Beach	Eastern terminus of SR 666, interchange
	Largo	15.544	25.016	SR 688 (Ulmerton Road)
		15.544	25.016	SR 686 east / CR 416 west (East Bay Drive) – Tampa	Western terminus of SR 686, eastern terminus of CR 416
	Clearwater	20.107	32.359	SR 60 east (Court Street)	Southern end of SR 60 concurrency
		20.637	33.212	SR 60 west (Court Street / Chestnut Street)	Northern end of SR 60 concurrency
		21.212	34.137	SR 590 east (Drew Street)	Western terminus of SR 590
	Dunedin	24.674	39.709	SR 580 east (Skinner Boulevard) / Tilden Street	Western terminus of SR 580
		27.121	43.647	SR 586 east (Curlew Road) / Causeway Boulevard – Dunedin Beach, Oldsmar	Western terminus of SR 586
	Tarpon Springs	34.419	55.392	SR 582 east (Tarpon Avenue) – Lutz	Western terminus of SR 582
Pasco	Holiday	37.296	60.022	US 19 – New Port Richey, Clearwater, St. Petersburg
Concurrency terminus       Closed/former       HOV only       Incomplete access       Tolled/ETC       Unopened

State-County Roads 595

Two extensions of the "hidden State Road 595" exist beyond Alternate US 19. The first one is between US 19 and US 92 in Downtown St. Petersburg, though this is being phased out, as signage indicates that Alt US 19 now ends at US 92 instead of US 19. The other is a brief multiplex with US 19 in Holiday which terminates a block north of the northern terminus of Alternate US 19 in Holiday at Mile Stretch Road. Pasco County Road 595 consists of Mile Stretch Road, then takes a sharp left onto Grand Boulevard. Within Holiday and Elfers, the road runs along the right-of-way of a former railroad line before heading to Main Street in New Port Richey, where it secretly makes another left turn before terminating at US 19. Pasco County Road 595 can be found again between Hudson and Aripeka, where it crosses the Pasco-Hernando County Line along the Gulf of Mexico on its way towards Hernando Beach, only to bypass downtown Hernando Beach and terminate once again with US 19, but this time also with the western terminus of Hernando CR 574/Spring Hill Drive.

External links

Template:Attached_KML/U.S. Route 19 Alternate (St. Petersburg – Holiday, Florida)

• Alternate US 19 (St. Petersburg) (Florida in Kodachrome)
• Alternate US 19 (SouthEastRoads.com) (AARoads.com).